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EgyWorkers from companies that were privatized under Mubarak’s regime staged a protest during their court case calling to return these companies back to the public sector. I spoke mostly with workers from Ghazl Shebin, where 1000s of jobs were lost their jobs and 1000s of money stolen in this corrupted privatization process. The workers are demanding all companies to be nationalized since contract conditions were violated. The case was postponed to September 11th.

Ghazl Shebin textile company was privatized under the authority of the ex-minister of investment Mahmoud Mohieldin in 2006 to Indorama Corporation, for 122| million EGP. This Textile company of 5700 workers used to be one of the leading exporting textile factories to Europe with net profit of 9 million EGP in 2005-2006 alone, and the main competitor to Indorama Corporation. With the help of Nazif’s cabinet including Youssef Bourtros Ghali (ex-finance minister), Osman Mohamed Osman (ex-economy development minister), Rashid Mohamed Rashid (ex- business & industry minister), Farouk Okda (ex- head of central bank), and Esha Abdel Hady (ex-labor force minister), the factory now has 1200 workers.

The working conditions have deteriorated tremendously in addition to the thousands of workers that were laid off with no compensation. Some of the workers that have been hired back are hired under very strict contracts, where they are fired every year for 2 months and hired back so the employer can avoid paying pensions & benefits to the workers.

The amount of corruption that goes into this so called “privatization” process is unacceptable. Privatization here literally means the stealing of the hard-working Egyptian workers’ money. What “privatization” good will it do to the people who don’t have jobs and those who are being deliberately exploited for the money-hungry businessmen & politicians? A7aaaa!

I DO NOT WISH TO SIT AT THIS TABLE!
(2002)
by
Harald Wozniewski
Translated by
Frances Kronenwett &
Harald Wozniewski, Karlsruhe

Month after month and year after year, everybody in Germany meets at a huge banquet table. There is coffee and cake! There is a place for everyone at this table and all the people are looking forward to celebrating together. Everyone is excited at the thought of what they will get – coffee and cake!

Each person receives coffee – as a reward for the work they have performed over the past time. However not everyone receives the same amount of coffee. The reason for this is that this is a very special banquet table. Whoever is able to sell his work or service at a high price receives a lot of coffee. On the other hand, the person who is only able to offer his work or service at a cheap price does not get so much coffee. Yes, you’ve guessed it! The person who has nothing to offer gets no coffee at all. Never mind, it’s not the end of the world, many guests are thinking, whilst looking enviously into the full cups of others. There is still cake to come!

That is correct. Cake is there for everyone. It is big enough for each person to have a slice. Oh, don’t start celebrating too soon! Cake is only for those who are fortunate enough to have wealth and properties which can be lent out to others in exchange for money. Only those who rent out houses, flats, plots of land and other such things are entitled to have a slice of cake – also those who lend money or who achieve capital gains from their own business. Now, most of the guests are looking confused. They have no wealth at all and nothing that they could lend out in the hope of making a profit. Their plates remain empty. Many of the guests at the banquet table have just received a tiny crumb of cake. I thought there was enough for everyone here?

Cast a glance behind you at the other end of the table. There are some guests sitting behind mountains of cake which they have just received.

No, this is more than indecent. I do not wish to sit at this table. I demand from the host that everyone gets at least one slice of cake and a second or more slices, but only when enough cake is left over.

I read yr comments on Twitter on London Riots – Yr an idiot. Get over yourself, they are nothing more than thugs and criminal ones at that. Typical crap spouting from you, so as you can place blame elsewhere. No Martyring going on there incl the coke dealer who got popped – 99% of the rioters will never have heard his name

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